The Story

The heart of Pin Oaks is to see people know Christ and to grow in that relationship and that is why this page is so hard to write…and so easy. The Story isn’t so much about our building (but it is a cool historical bank building in downtown Anna, TX), our past event and activities, or even how we got our start. Our story is summed up in the life of Christ and His followers at Pin Oaks. Ultimately our story begins and ends with Jesus…along the way or in the “dash” is where we get to live out the many facets of “our story” with Jesus.

Anonymous:

Just recently I remember the face of a young woman who stumbled in to our services at the request of a friend. She was worn out from trying to do everything on her own. She had carried the weight of the world on her shoulders and was being crushed. At some point we have all been in her position. Her sin had taken her far away from God and into a life of decadence and waste. She was lost and wandering. That morning she heard that God desires to welcome her “home” and He has been waiting for her to see life the way it was designed to be lived. That morning she surrendered to the idea and truth that Christ was her only answer. She confessed her sin and the very next week stood in front of our family of faith and told them as much.

The Pratt’s and an “around the world” Blessing:

December 13, 2009 will be a day that will always be etched in the minds of Aaron and Whitney Pratt. But it was a decision almost exactly a year earlier that brought them to one of the greatest days of their lives.
In Ethiopia, the Pratt family was introduced to the third member of their family, Mekele, on that fateful Sunday. That day marks the beginning of an exciting journey for the Pratt family, but the journey to that day was just as stirring.
“On September 10 we received the call from our agency, with news of our son, born with the birth name of Aaron, just like his Daddy,” Whitney recalls. “We knew he was meant for our family, and by December 13, he was in our arms in Ethiopia! We are now blessed to be first-time parents, and to get to spend each day of our lives with our sweet boy.”

They got home on Saturday, December 19 and had family and church friends waiting at DFW airport to greet the family. The day after they got home, Mekele turned 7 months old.

The Pratt’s are faithful members of Pin Oaks Christian Fellowship and help remind us that we need to remain a church that is actively involved in helping children locally and out of the country by supporting missions like Clothe a Child and orphans in Honduras.

To learn more about the Pratt’s CLICK HERE.

Amy and Brian

The story you see below is an excerpt from Amy’s blog and a great reminder that we are all on a journey and at POCF you will be encouraged to keep moving in God’s direction for your life. Listen to how God is working in Amy and Brian’s life here:

A few weeks ago at church, the message mentioned “Spiritual Gifts.” Our paster, mentioned that if we hadn’t read 1 Corinthians 12 that we should. So over the next week I read the chapter several times. As I sit and reread the chapter again, with the goal of really letting that chapter settle in my heart, several things come to mind. In recent posts, I share thoughts and issues that have been weighing heavily on my heart. Primarily missions and adoption. Even though these are two very different callings, I think that for some they go very well together.

1 Corinthian 12:4-6 (NIV) 4) There are different kinds of gifts, but the same spirit. 5) There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6) There are different kinds of working , but the same God works all of them in all men.

Now, I know that God has called me into “TEACHING,” and this has been something I have consumed myself in. I love to teach, I love to instill a passion for learning in children. I am still very new in this field, as this is my 4th year to teach. However, could I be getting called to “TEACH” more, reach out to more children, share my love and knowledge with children who aren’t given this opportunity by their society or their environment, their country? I believe that this is where verses 5 and 6 come in. To share this service with others, to work in a world that is foreign to me, but to children who need to hear about God? Children who will never hear the Lord’s word unless Christians (like me) step out into their world, an uncomfortable zone, make sacrifices, and serve God in this way?

Now, I have been asking God to prepare me and to ready me for my journey to Honduras during Spring Break. I am ecstatic to be able to join Alex and Laura on this short-term mission trip. They will be moving there this year to do long-term mission work in the orphanages in Puerto Lempira. I am so extremely blessed that the Lord is guiding me through this time. I am blessed to be able to join this effort even for just a short time. I pray that God can utitilize me to do what I can from here at home. I know that my eyes have been opened, but only to a degree. There is so much that I haven’t seen, haven’t thought about, haven’t realized.

I pray that God uses me, uses my gifts and talents, and that I can make a difference even if just a tiny one to even one person. I commit myself to using what God has given me, in addition to my gifts, I will use my knowledge of education and of children to do what I can in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. There are so many countries in this world, with people who are lost, who will never hear about JESUS.

Could all of this have to do with my calling? Could all of this be leading me to where God has planned for me to be from before my existence? Through prayer, study, and time, I am confident that God will show me and guide me in the right direction.

That is our story. Not much different from yours? Does your story have a different twist? Our church is full of stories just like that and we are trying to tell them everyday. Come explore our story more fully this weekend and get to know what God is doing though Pin Oaks and how you can be a part of this never ending story!